Hush: An Irish Princess' Tale

Reviewed by JodiG. for TeensReadToo.com

What would you do if you were torn away from your life and everything you knew and forced into slavery? If you were taken to new places where people spoke different languages than you, how would you persevere?

Meet Melkorka, the oldest daughter of an Irish king. As members of royalty, Melkorka and her brother, Nuada, and sister, Brigid, enjoy life at the top of the social structure. In Dublin, travelers from around the world gather to sell their wares. The "heathen" Vikings are among them. Melkorka wants nothing more for her birthday than to visit the stores in Dublin with her family and find the perfect brooch for her cape. The trip ends tragically when her brother is attacked in one of the shops. Although Nuada has survived, he is disfigured and, therefore, no longer able to be the future king.

Melkorka's father, the king, develops a plan for revenge against the Viking offenders. The plan involves luring a Viking ship to their town. Melkorka and her younger sister, Brigid, are sent away in the dark of night to assure their safety.

Before they can reach their destination, Melkorka and Brigid are abducted and taken aboard a ship bound for an unknown destination. Although her instinct is to announce her royal status and demand to be treated as such, Melkorka succumbs to the hints from Brigid and the word she has heard her mother utter so often, "Hush." She becomes silent, refusing to speak to her abductors, the other prisoners, or even to scream at the horrors she sees inflicted upon others.

While Brigid manages a daring escape, Melkorka remains captive, forming silent bonds with those she is held prisoner with and captivating one of her abductors. Her silence becomes her strength, an unbreakable and enticing gift. But how will a princess adapt to life as a slave? Will she ever escape or will she remain silenced forever?

HUSH is based on an Icelandic folk tale. Donna Jo Napoli has gone to great lengths to create a story for the princess/slave described in the tale. Her writing draws you into the story; you can almost feel the cold air from the deck of the Viking ship. This is an amazing tale of strength and perseverance in the face of insurmountable challenges. A highly recommended reading experience.

3 out of 4 people found this review helpful.

Recommended

Hush was a very interesting novel. I was not the least bit disappointed until the end (which made me almost cry). But certainly not every book can have a happy ending, just as reality doesn't always have a happy ending. The ending aside, I loved the book and would recommend it to those with a strong tollerance for sadness. Also, it has some intense moments, so probably not advised for young readers.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

A reviewer

I am a historical fiction lover and I really enjoy a tale about princesses. This book sounded like a great read. I finished it in one day, but it was not what I expected. The beginning was very attention-grabbing, but towards the end of the book, it got really weird. The ending was pretty horrible. It was overall ok. I have read much better books.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

The best, delightful book you could ever find

One of the things I love about this book is the way it is written. Suspenseful till the last page, as the words just seem to slide off the page. You might think I'm lying however, this is book is a must-read and reading it for yourself might prove what I'm saying true. Never mind the book, just looking at the author's name you know what's instore for you. When a book like this is written, it deserves a round of applause, for the book as well as the wonderful author who wrote it.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Courtesy of Teens Read Too

What would you do if you were torn away from your life and everything you knew and forced into slavery? If you were taken to new places where people spoke different languages than you, how would you persevere? Meet Melkorka, the oldest daughter of an Irish king. As members of royalty, Melkorka and her brother, Nuada, and sister, Brigid, enjoy life at the top of the social structure. In Dublin, travelers from around the world gather to sell their wares. The ¿heathen¿ Vikings are among them. Melkorka wants nothing more for her birthday than to visit the stores in Dublin with her family and find the perfect brooch for her cape. The trip ends tragically when her brother is attacked in one of the shops. Although Nuada has survived, he is disfigured and, therefore, no longer able to be the future king. Melkorka¿s father, the king, develops a plan for revenge against the Viking offenders. The plan involves luring a Viking ship to their town. Melkorka and her younger sister, Brigid, are sent away in the dark of night to assure their safety. Before they can reach their destination, Melkorka and Brigid are abducted and taken aboard a ship bound for an unknown destination. Although her instinct is to announce her royal status and demand to be treated as such, Melkorka succumbs to the hints from Brigid and the word she has heard her mother utter so often, ¿Hush.' She becomes silent, refusing to speak to her abductors, the other prisoners, or even to scream at the horrors she sees inflicted upon others. While Brigid manages a daring escape, Melkorka remains captive, forming silent bonds with those she is held prisoner with and captivating one of her abductors. Her silence becomes her strength, an unbreakable and enticing gift. But how will a princess adapt to life as a slave? Will she ever escape or will she remain silenced forever? HUSH is based on an Icelandic folk tale. Donna Jo Napoli has gone to great lengths to create a story for the princess/slave described in the tale. Her writing draws you into the story you can almost feel the cold air from the deck of the Viking ship. This is an amazing tale of strength and perseverance in the face of insurmountable challenges. A highly recommended reading experience. **Reviewed by: JodiG.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

My top 5

The second I started reading this story I couldn't put it down! No exaggeration. Every chapter was so interesting and had me hanging with each word on what would happen next and the story truly touched my heart. It was very sad but not overwhelmingly depressing, for me personally I felt very hopeful after the ending. Donna Jo Napoli is a truly gifted writer! I have yet to be disappointed with anything she writes but this is the best story of hers I have read yet!

Some disturbing content

This was a well written book with excellent character development. But I would not recommend it to young readers because of some disturbing things that happened to the main character and her fellow captives. The horrors of slavery are made very clear. There is no happy ending to this book.

Cool

Hush is a good book about two Irish princess' who must leave their hometown for a few days to escape possible kidnapping. The sad thing is they end up getting kidnapped anyways! It turns out that the people who are kidnapping them are... Slave Traders! The two girls have to "keep their mouths shut" or else people will know where they are from. They must also not interact so that the traders don't find out that their sisters. Hush is Cool.

A Magnificent Piece of Our Time

Hush is one of the greatest historical fiction novels that I have ever read. Set during the Medieval ages, Napoli creates a world that realistically portrays sea travelers, the barbarism of the Vikings and Medieval slavery. This is a wonderful read for women of any age. It has many lessons to tell the reader.

Proud irish princess-a silent concubine

If you absolutly hate sad endings than you will hate this book.It is briliantly writen and a wonderful story with unforgetable characters.However i personaly hated the ending.I thought it was sad and depresing,but thier are some that might consider the ending as only semi-sad and still enjoy it. This story had me going the entire time I was reading it(last year on thanksgiving)and I was forever hoping for a happy ending so it was a big blow for me to discover that it wasnt what i was hopping for so fervently.

This book is about a young irish princess,who is taken abourd a slave ship with her sister. She and her sister deside not to talk so as to make thier origens a secret.Her sister manages to escape but she cant. Eventualy she is sold to a man as a concubine(hore basicaly except they dont have a choice). During the tale I kept waiting for her to somehow make it back with her family. I was disapointed. i wouldnt recomend this book to everyone. But like I said before it is briliantly writen.

The reason?

How do I describe my feelings for this book? Hush, was an eye opener for me in more than one way. Usually, when I read I tend to pride on those lovey, romantic scenes or the promise of tomorrow with a happy ending; but what I was instore for from the very first page of this book took me by shock. Hands down I love this book without a second guess...yes, I would have prefered a better ending but then again that is what makes this story one of a kind.
As many author tend to follow the crowd of the people (in my believe) Donna Jo Napoli holds you with suspence that last up until the last page. Heartbreak of the everlasting pain thats lives within the story, the stain of lost but only one moment of love and joy! Donna, speaks the truth in this book, not all thinks can have a blissful ending but some just hold a greater meaning.

Great

This book was very well written. Its still very sad though, as it is no fairytale and there is no prince coming to save this princess. It isn't conclusive at all, and the only resolution is the transformation the narrator makes from a snotty princess to a daring heroine. Overall, this is a resonant story of survival and brutality that will make you bite your lip in frustration. A real love-it-or-hate-it novel.

good book

i thought this book was pretty good. At some parts of the book it was pretty sad and kind of disturbing, but all in all it was a good book.

It was soooo depressing!!:(

After reading all the reviews i was really excited about reading this book, but after reading it i was very disappointed. It was so depressing with the abuse and all what the princess went through.I dont recommend this book, unless you like depressing books.

Amazing Book!!

I loved this book. It seemed so real and like there should be a sequal but the book was based off of a gaelic story. I could read this over and over!

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